Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Shares Bought by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 988 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $1,721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NWN. AM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northwest Natural during the 4th quarter valued at $137,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in Northwest Natural in the fourth quarter worth about $138,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural by 125.1% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 5,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 2,842 shares during the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY bought a new position in shares of Northwest Natural during the 4th quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,775 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

NWN stock traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $38.46. 32,053 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 329,736. Northwest Natural Holding has a 52 week low of $34.95 and a 52 week high of $47.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a 50-day moving average of $37.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.50.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $433.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.81 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 7.52%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a $0.488 dividend. This represents a $1.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NWN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on Northwest Natural in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.40.

Northwest Natural Profile

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.